Reading
by batman-defeats-all
Summary: Tim just wanted to read. He didn't realize just how impossible it was to do such in the Wayne household. One-shot


**The book Tim is reading, and thus this story has lines from, is _Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows_, and it belongs to J. K. Rowling.**

**Everyone else belongs to DC. Not me.  
**

Tim sat down on one of the plush chairs in the sitting room of Wayne Manor. It had been a quiet day; Stephanie was shopping with Cass, the Titans were spending the day off, and he hadn't seen neither Bruce nor any of his brothers all day. While he didn't know where they were, he could assume they were all too busy to hang around.

Which finally gave him some time to read.

Pulling a thick novel out from under his arms, he lounged in the seat and opened the book, soon engulfing himself within the words.

_He fell headlong into sunlight, and his feet found warm ground. When I straightened up, he saw that he was in a nearly deserted playground. A single huge chimney dominated the distant skyline. Two girls were swinging backward and forward, and a skinny boy was watching them from behind-_

"Drake?" a young voice pulled him from the story and back to reality.

"Yes, Damian?" he ground out, lowering the book to his lap.

"What are you doing?"

He could not control the unbelieving stare he sent at the boy.

"... Reading..."

The boy rolled his eyes at the answer.

"_Tt. _Well, of course. I meant what are you reading. I do not recognize the title."

Tim was once again in disbelief.

"Damian, this a Harry Potter book."

The child rose an eyebrow.

"Is this supposed to mean anything?"

The teen sputtered at the question.

"It is only a cultural phenomenon! How could you not know what Harry Potter is?!"

Damian started walking away.

"_Tt. _If you read it, it is unlikely it is even worth knowing about. I'm going to go find Father."

As soon as Damian left the room, Tim rolled his eyes, annoyed, before returning to his book.

_-and a skinny boy was watching them from behind a clump of bushes. His black hair was overlong and his clothes were so mismatched that that it looked deliberate: too short jeans, a shabby, overlong coat that might have belonged to a grown man, an odd smocklike shirt._

_ Harry moved closer to the boy. Snape looked no more than nine or-_

"Hey Timmy!"

Tim blinked as a voice once again tugged him from the magical world. Glancing over to where the voice originated, he saw Dick standing in the doorway of the sitting room, a large grin on his face.

"Hey, Dick."

"Whatcha reading?" he asked, walking over to where Tim sat.

"Just a Harry Potter book."

Dick's eyes lit up.

"Ohhh... Those are fun! What part are you on?"

Tim did his best to not get annoyed at the questions that were keeping him from the story; Dick was just trying to be considerate.

"Snape's memories."

"Oh man, I cried when I read that!"

"Yeah..." Timmy said quietly, glancing down at the book longingly. Dick noticed.

"You probably want to get back to reading, then... See you later, Timmy!"

Dick skipped out, allowing Tim to go back to the story.

_-Snape looked no more than nine or ten years old, sallow, small, stringy. There was undisguised greed in his thin face as he watched the younger of the two girls swinging higher and higher than her-_

"He sounds like a stalker," a voice sounded out directly next to his ear.

Nearly jumping in surprise, Tim swiftly turned to the sound, to see Jason looking over his shoulder, reading the book along with him.

"'undisguised greed'? That sounds like the creepiest thing a ten-year-old can do, and I know the Demon Brat. Of course, knowing you, that was probably how you read those old Batman and Robin news articles."

Tim pushed Jason's head away from his shoulder.

"I was not that creepy when I was _studying_ the Dynamic Duo."

"Stalking," Jason said in a singsong voice.

Tim could only sigh.

"What do you want, Jason?"

The older teen shrugged.

"I was bored. Wanted to know what you were reading. Turned out it was one of those weird magic books that had that creepy guy with no nose. Decided to bother you about it."

Tim could only scowl.

"Would you let me go back to my book, then?"

Jason smirked at the question.

"But it is so much more fun teasing you, Timbo."

The glare that followed was enough to scare even Jason a little.

"Okay, fine, go back to your freaky-wizard book."

The glare did not die until Jason left the room, when he exasperatedly turned back to his novel, diving back in before someone else could interrupt him.

_-as he watched the younger of the two girls swinging higher and higher than her sister._

_ "Lily, don't do it!" shrieked the elder of the two._

_ But the girl had let go of the swing at the very height of its arc and flown into the air, quite literally flown, launched herself skyward with a great shout of laughter, and instead of of crumbling on the playground asphalt, she soared like a trapeze artist through the air, staying up far too long, landing far too lightly._

_ "Mummy told you not to!"_

_ Petunia stopped her swing by dragging the heels of her sandals on the ground, making a crunching, grinding sound, then leapt up, hand_s _on hips._

_"Mummy said you weren't allowed, Lily!"_

_ "But I'm fine," said Lily, still gigg-_

"Tim, could you help me with some-"

"No!" the teen screamed, jumping up, the book still in hand. "All I am going to do right now is read my book! I am not going to let Damian or Jason bother me, I'm not going to small chat with Dick, and I will not help you, Bruce! I just want to read!"

Bruce froze at his spot in the doorway, looking at the teen, a little shocked at the outburst.

"... Okay then. Enjoy your book, Tim." After speaking, the man still hurried off.

Now content that there would be no more interruptions, Tim truly let himself relax, opening the book.

_"But I'm fine," said Lily, still giggling. "Tuney, look at this. Watch what I can do."_

_ Petunia glanced around. The playground was deserted apart from themselves and, though the girls did not know it, Snape. Lily had picked up a fallen flower-_

"I'm back, my dear Timmy! Ya miss me?" Stephanie burst out as she ran into the room, many bags in her hands. Tim could only respond with a groan of defeat.


End file.
